Tickets for Winterfest go on sale on Monday, December 3rd at 12 Noon. Tickets are $45 and only 550 tickets will be sold. As always, this event will sell out. Tickets willonly be available through Ticketworks.com.
This year, Winterfest will return to Landmark Center (75 West 5th Street – St. Paul) and will take place on Friday, February 8th from 7 – 10pm.
Big beers, here we come!
Ugh, $45? I’m, by no means, a cheapskate, but $45? Ditch the fancy locale, food, and music and just serve us the great beer. That’s why we go.
The price tag keeps people like you out. It’s small and personal and that’s why it’s such a great event. The beers offered at Winterfest are much bigger then many of the other fests and cost that much more to make. Hell, it’s only $10 or so more then an average brewfest and you get so much more for it.
Ben, you’re being an ass – and I pity you if you don’t see that.
I’ve enjoyed the Fest a number of times at the old location – the food, the jazz…it’s a great time.
However, $45 ($90 for two) is an expensive gig. I used to use the Winterfest with its accoutrements as a way to introduce my friends to the local brewpubs and to the many styles out there. I took one look at the price this year (and the year before it) and simply decided to not even bother to send out the e-mail. My wife and I won’t be going – we already have a commitment, and frankly, $90 plus the babysitter fees is more than we can handle.
I hope it does sell out as quickly as it has in years past for the sake of the MN Craft Brewer’s Guild, who do a damn fine job with organization of these sorts of things.
I just think that we will be priced out from here on.
I think it was 40 last year. Does seem pricey when you consider ABR was only 25 bucks and had a ton more breweries then winterfest typically has. The beers are indeed “bigger” at WF, so that must justify the price tag.lm guessing the Landmark ctr is fairly spendy to rent for an evening as well. At least ticketworks doesnt typically charge fees.
One of the problems that they ran into with other locations (like the St. Paul College Club) was that they were too small for much more than 200 people… in 2006, the 200 tickets for the event sold out in 15 minutes, so a bigger space was definitely necessary.
I think it’s worth $45, though I can understand that it might be a little spendy for some people. Knowing the Guild and its members, I don’t think they could do the same event for much less without compromising something, be it food, size of venue, etc.
I see no point in spending $45 to hang out at Landmark Center to drink locally-produced beer when I can enjoy the same at home or at one of the local brewpubs.
The only advantage I see to Winterfest is being able to do side-by-side comparisons of the offerings from our local brewmasters. But, $45 is a lot to pay for that privilege.
Regarding the cost of Winterfest vs ABR, one point to keep in mind is the time of year determines the choice of venues. Few people are willing to spend a significant time outdoors in the winter. Therefore, an event like Winterfest has to be held indoors. An indoor venue will necessarily cost more than a large, mostly abandoned, parking lot.
I understand the change in venue and the wish to expand (and the necessary cost hike to account for the change), and I think the idea behind WinterFest is great.
I’ve also spoken with the folks behind putting these shindigs together, and I definitely get the sense that they try hard to make the festivals in nice, accessable places (I don’t think anyone can argue that ABR hadn’t outgrown Peavey). The difficulty is that the price point is climbing and shutting out some folks who might otherwise purchase a ticket.
I suppose the interesting question is whether or not the hike will make a difference in ticket sales. I expect not; there are enough craft beer fans with expendable income that 550 will not be a difficult number.
I am in need of Winterfest tickets, at least 2, but would like 6.
Please e-mail if you have some for sale.
Well there’s the answer. The tickets sold out rapidly and there are still people interested in going.
I’m happy for the Craft Brewer’s Guild that the event sold out as it has in past years and although I probably fall into the “craft beer fans with expendable income” category that could have afforded it (just ask the server over at Chatterbox about our little outing last night), I just thought it was too steep for what is offered. No doubt there will be some great beers there that I would love to try but $45 a pop, I could have a nice night elsewhere in town enjoying some great local brews. Landmark Center is a nice venue but I have to believe that the ticket price is greatly influenced by their rates. I’d love to see the Guild find a more reasonably priced venue.
I was shocked to learn that tickets were gone in 45 min!! For the first time in 5 yrs I will miss Winterfest. Why not make this event BIGGER! The popularity is there and the cities offer many fine larger venues. This could become the winter version of the Great Taste of Midwest. Just a thought and I will sorely miss the beers and this tasty event.